Canadian Tax Office Denies Ideology Plays Role in Audits

Canada Revenue Agency officials say stepped-up “political-activity audits” of charities are not targeting organizations that are critical of the Conservative Party government’s policies, the Canadian Press writes.

The government earmarked extra funds to the tax office in 2012 to create a unit to investigate nonprofits suspected of spending more than the legal limit of 10 percent of their resources on work deemed to be political. The new unit set a target of 10 audits in its first fiscal year, at least half of which involved environmental groups that oppose government energy policies, according to an analysis by the Canadian Press.

“The CRA does not conduct research into the political views of any charity, and it does not base its decision to audit any charities on this criterion,” agency spokesman Noel Carisse told the news service.